- August 15, 2026
- Darren Tobia
Longstanding tensions between Orange’s Historic Preservation Commission and the local city government are coming to a head. Last year, Mayor Dwayne Warren refused to reappoint enough commissioners to a new term. Though the HPC still remains a legal commission under an ordinance passed in 2013, Warren’s refusal to make reappointments leaves them unable to form a quorum, effectively ending their work.
This is coming at a time when large developments are happening within historic districts that should fall under the commission’s review authority, according to Jody Leight, HPC chair.
“Some things were getting approved administratively but other larger projects wouldn’t come to us at all,” Leight said. “There was active sabotage from City Hall and the final blow was the walk-on motion.”
In March, the Orange City Council delivered what Leight calls the “final blow” that dismantled the HPC. Former Councilwomen Tency Eason and Jamie Summers-Johnson, both of whom lost their recent reelection bids joined Council President Adrienne Wooten in voting against walk-on resolution 178-2026 to renew the HPC’s legal counsel’s contract, striking it down.
“I’m the chair of the commission and I was never given any notice either before or after this passed,” Leight said.
All of this is coming at an inconvenient time for local preservationists as the city has seen a wave of new real estate development happening within historic districts. Most notable are the plans to redevelop the National Register-listed Orange Memorial Hospital Historic District, demolishing seven of the nine buildings.
Although the property is not one of the city’s local historic districts, which fall under the HPC’s scope, preservationists suspect the developer’s partnership with the city government — the developer said Warren wants to move City Hall into one of the buildings — should trigger a Section 106 review, therefore requiring the review of both the local commission and the State Historic Preservation Office.
Preservation New Jersey attempted to reach three officials at the City Hall, but never received a response from them. However, at the March City Council meeting, Councilman Clifford Ross asked whether the HPC had been “disbanded.”
“It hasn’t been disbanded,” said Chris Hartwyk, the city business administrator. “There are questions regarding what they can do and what they can’t do.”
The HPC was formed when the City Council passed an ordinance in 2013. However, city officials have made a series of public declarations questioning the commission’s legitimacy over the past few years, claiming that a notice still needs to be mailed to homeowners living in designated historic districts.
Leight said her commission had won a Essex County grant that would have covered the cost of the mailing but it still was never sent. Leight also suggested the notices go out along with the annual property tax bill, so that it would not cost the municipal government.
“The only additional cost would be in putting one more piece of paper in the envelope, but they flat-out refused,” Leight said.
At the March City Council meeting, Councilwoman Quantavia Hilbert asked if there had been negotiations between Warren’s administration and the HPC to get the notices mailed to the homeowners.
“There were previously negotiations that weren’t resolved,” Hartwyk said.
